Biden (on Afghanistan): We've Inherited A Real Mess

[tekisui]

Source: CBS News

(CBS) Vice President Joe Biden said that the Obama administration and Congress are "off and running" in getting an economic stimulus package completed and approved with bipartisan support, saying that the goal is to "get money out of the door as rapidly as possible" to speed job growth.

(big snip)

The Afghan Front

Demonstrations continued this week in Pakistan against U.S. military operations, after two missile strikes in the Waziristan region from an unmanned aircraft killed almost two dozen people. Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said the attacks killed an unspecified number of civilians.

The missile strikes continued a Bush administration practice of granting permission to its forces to fire into Pakistan from Afghanistan.

Schieffer asked if President Obama would continue that policy.

"I can't speak to any particular attack, I can't speak to any particular action - it's not appropriate for me to do that," Biden said. "But I can say that the president of the United States said during his campaign and in the debates that if there is an actionable target, of high-level al Qaeda personnel, that he would not hesitate to use action to deal with that."

Biden spoke of more cooperation with the Pakistan military in the FATA (Federally Administered Territory Area) in Waziristan, a tribal region he described as "ungovernable" and which is favored by militants.

"We're in the process of working with the Pakistanis to help train up their counterinsurgency capability of their military, and we're getting new agreements with them about how to deal with cross-border movements of these folks, so we're making progress."

"Would you notify before any of these cross-border movements?" Schieffer asked. "Because as you well know, there is a fear that there would be leaks on something like that. Exactly what is our policy on that?"

"I always try to be completely candid with you, but I can't respond to that question. I'm not going to respond to that question," Biden said.

"You said in Afghanistan that things are going to get tougher before they get better. What do you mean by that?"

"What's happened is that because of - 'neglect' may be the wrong word, but failure to provide sufficient resources, economic, political and military, as well as failure to get a coherent policy among our allies, economically and politically, and in terms of the military resources, the situation has deteriorated a great deal. The Taliban is in effective control of significant parts of the country they were not before, number one.

"Number two, 95% roughly of the world's opium and heroin comes out of that country," said Biden, who added that corruption within the country's police and national police forces is rife. "Some of our allies who have committed to train these troops did not do them well.

"So the bottom line here is, we've inherited a real mess. We're about to go in and try to essentially reclaim territory that's been effectively lost. … There are going to be some additional military forces. There are going to be additional efforts to train their police and to train their Afghan army. And all of that means we're going to be engaging the enemy more now."

"So should we expect more American casualties?" Schieffer asked.

"I hate so say it, but yes, I think there will be. There will be an up-tick."

more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/01/25/ftn/main4752148.shtml

[leftstreet]

1. and so it begins n/t

[Aloha Spirit]

2. Having watched the video, it was very clear Biden wanted to speak about it. I'm thankful that of all

the VP choices, the most knowledgeable on the war in Afghanistan was chosen.

[Bobbieo]

3. The sad part is that in 2000 Afghanistan was almost Taliban free

until Bush invaded Iraq and pulled the troops out for Iraq. Yes - it is oil in Iraq and opium in Afghanistan.